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Folio Investing, an online brokerage service for retail investors and financial advisors, was shopping around to upgrade its wireless corporate network. It wanted a WiFi infrastructure that could pass more than just data packets to endpoints, but also video conferencing, video streaming and soft-phone telephony service.

Aerohive isn’t exactly a household name, and neither is Folio Investing. But Aerohive is an up-and-coming networking vendor, and it displaced market leader Cisco for Folio’s business – with the help of its partner, Alliance Technology Group, a national systems integrator serving enterprise and government organizations.

Folio considered several vendors for its infrastructure upgrade, but the recommendation of Aerohive by Alliance Technology opened the door for a change in technology. Once Folio got a look at the controller-less management, the investment company determined Aerohive was the best choice for its needs.

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“Aerohive’s HiveManager Network Management System (NMS) is allowing us to control and manage the Wi-Fi, and to troubleshoot any problems from a central location,” said Tim Reynolds, VP of Network and Infrastructure, Folio Investing. “We also can centrally manage APs and the process of providing updates.”

What solution providers sometimes forget is the influence they have over customer purchasing considerations. Studies have shown 50 percent of the time businesses will purchase a technology based on their solution provider’s recommendation. A large portion of the balance strongly considers technologies and vendors recommended by their solution providers.

Technology vendors often overlook this connection between partners and customers. Many vendors look to their channels for growth, but associate growth with the acquisition of net-new customers. The reality is a stronger probability of sales conversion exists with a partner’s existing customers than through new customers. For instance, if a security vendor signs a partner with a large install base of networking customers, they stand a much better chance of success in getting those existing accounts to buy its software than prospecting for new deals.

Solution providers need to recognize this special relationship, as well as foster it with their customers. This is where customer satisfaction and relationship management become vitally important. Solution providers cannot afford to take their relationships for granted, since existing customers will drive much of their future sales as well as provide them with a definable value when dealing with vendors.

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Lawrence M. Walsh is CEO and president of The 2112 Group, a technology business advisory service that specializes in optimizing indirect channels and partner relationships. He’s also the executive director of the Channel Vanguard Council. He is the former publisher of Channel Insider and editor of VARBusiness Magazine. You can reach him at lmwalsh@the2112group.com.

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Larry Walsh:@lmwalsh2112| Channelnomics: @channelnomics